Mobilization of community resources to work with abusive and neglectful families: Community organization in New York state

This article describes the community organization experience of the Family Life Development Center at Cornell University in connection with the federally financed Resource Center on Child Abuse and Neglect which it has operated since 1975. Early on, the Center decided to concentrate its efforts on organizing local task forces on child abuse and neglect which would work at the community level to improve services for families and children afflicted with the problem. As a result, over 50 such groups were organized and they have stimulated creation of over 100 new services including Parents Anonymous chapters, parent aides, multidisciplinary teams and parenting education projects. In short, the local community organization approach enabled a small state level staff to stimulate a major mobilization of resources for child abuse and neglect at the community level throughout the state. The process began with several “trial and error” experiences in rural New York. This led to technical assistance in task force formation for a dozen more counties and finally to regional workshops on task force organizations. The process culminated with formation of a statewide federation of the local groups. The Center is now implementing the approach in New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.     

The Mediation of Spectator Sport

Abstract

This study employs the theory of “media logic” and the method of hermeneutical criticism to demonstrate some effects of a major social institution, television, on the “text” of experiencing spectator sports. The study finds that the medium of television makes spectator sports into an experience which incorporates narrative, intimacy, commodification, and rigid time segmentation. The conventions imposed by television on spectator sports are presented here as powerfully affecting the meanings which televised sports have for their audiences.     

Evaluation of an Innovative Mathematics Program in Terms of Classroom Environment,Student Attitudes,and Conceptual Development

Dull classroom environments, poor students’ attitudes and inhibited conceptual development led to the creation of an innovative mathematics program, the Class Banking System (CBS), which enables teachers to use constructivist ideas and approaches. To assess the effectiveness of the CBS, the Individualised Classroom Environment Questionnaire (ICEQ), Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES), Test of Mathematics-Related Attitudes (TOMRA), and concept map tests were administered to two groups of fifth-grade students as pretests and posttests over an academic year. To enrich the data collected from those questionnaires, three case studies (one for the experimental group and two for the control group) were undertaken based on observations and interviews of selected students. Relative to non-CBS students, CBS students experienced more favorable changes in terms of mathematics concept development, attitudes to mathematics, and perceived classroom environments on several dimensions of the CLES (e.g., Personal Relevance, Shared Control) and the ICEQ (e.g., Participation and Differentiation). Qualitative information based on classroom observations and student interviews reinforced and enriched the patterns of results obtained from the concept test and questionnaires.     

A practical reinforcement hierarchy for classroom behavior modification

A practical reinforcement hierarchy was proposed for classroom-based behavior modification programs. The seven-level hierarchy ranged from primitive consequences (Le., Infantile Physical Contact and Food) through the more abstract consequences (i.e., Praise and Internal Self-Reinforcement). Suggestions were made for using the hierarchy in teacher consultation and behavior modification planning.     

Effects of classroom environment on science attitudes: A cross‐cultural replication in Indonesia‡

A three‐phase study, with a different sample for each phase, involved a total of 1125 secondary school students in Indonesia. The first phase involving 373 grade 8 and 9 students was used to develop and validate an Indonesian classroom environment instrument with eight scales based on the Individualized Classroom Environment Questionnaire and the Classroom Environment Scale. In the second phase of the study, 502 Indonesian science students in grades 11 and 12 were involved in a translation, adaptation and validation of a four‐scale Indonesian version of the Test of Science‐Related Attitudes. In the third phase, these new Indonesian attitude and environment scales were used with another sample of 250 Indonesian biology students in an investigation of the effects of classroom psychosocial environment on students’ science‐related attitudes. The finding of statistically significant associations between environment and attitudes replicated much prior work in science classrooms in developed countries. For example, more favourable science‐related attitudes on several scales were found in classes perceived as having more personalization, participation, investigation and order and organization.

     

SCHOOL‐WIDE POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS AND SUPPORTS FOR STUDENTS WITH EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS

This investigation employed a participatory action research method involving school psychology consultants and educators to design and evaluate the impact of school‐wide positive behavioral interventions and supports in a self‐contained school serving students with emotional and behavioral disorders. The traditional practices of a universal system, including teaching and acknowledging expected behaviors and responding to disruptive behaviors, were adapted to better accommodate the needs of a more challenging student population. In addition, system‐wide practices, including various teaming and professional development strategies, were instituted to promote sustainability. Results, after implementation of Tier 1, showed reductions in the frequency of discipline referrals and the number of emergency safety interventions, with a sustained impact across the next 3 years. Limitations included the lack of experimental control in evaluating the intervention. Discussion includes recommendations for an expanded role for school psychologists in promoting evidence‐based practices for high‐risk student populations.     

An Online Questionnaire for Evaluating Students' and Teachers' Perceptions of Constructivist Multimedia Learning Environments

The purpose of this article is to describe the development, validation and use of the Constructivist Multimedia Learning Environment Survey (CMLES). This questionnaire assesses teachers' and students' perceptions of the learning environment when students use online multimedia programs while teachers use constructivism as a referent for their teaching. The design of the questionnaire was based on a constructivist approach to learning and focused on the process of learning with the multimedia program and on the nature of that program. Before the use of the CMLES becomes widespread, it was important to determine whether it is valid and reliable. Therefore, a study involving 221 students in 12 high school classrooms into statistical validation and interpretive validation of the questionnaire was undertaken. For this sample of Grade 10 and 11 students who completed the actual and preferred forms of the questionnaire, the CMLES scales demonstrated a high degree of internal consistency reliability (with alpha reliability coefficients ranging from .73 to .82), as well as satisfactory factorial validity and discriminant validity. Therefore, the study supports the reliability and validity of the CMLES for assessing students' and teachers' perceptions of one important aspect in evaluating learning environments which promote the use of multimedia programs and constructivist learning approaches.